Libyan forces claim to have shot down Turkish drone after Haftar vows to expel Ankara - UPDATE: Parliament refuses to ratify deal with Turkey

RT
Fri, 03 Jan 2020 23:06 UTC

© REUTERS/Esam Omran Al-Fetori

Libyan National Army (LNA) anti-aircraft unit, file photo

The Libyan National Army (LNA) said it shot down a Turkish drone over Tripoli, shortly after its leader General Khalifa Haftar called for a holy war against Turkey for supporting a rival government.

On Friday, the LNA said it had shot down a Turkish drone south of Tripoli, the seat of the Government of National Accord (GNA). One report identified it as a Bayraktar TB2 armed drone, downed after targeting a column of LNA vehicles.

On Thursday, the Turkish parliament approved the deployment of troops, advisers and equipment to Libya to prop up the GNA, the internationally recognized authority which controls only a small portion of the country. The exact scope of the deployment was not made public.

General Haftar, who runs the LNA on behalf of a rival legislature based in Tobruk, vowed on Friday to "confront and expel" foreign forces.

"We declare jihad and general mobilization to counter the Turkish invasion," Haftar said. "The Turkish friendly people must rise up against the adventurers who force their army to be wiped out in Libya."

Haftar's LNA has been advancing on Tripoli in fits and starts since April 2019, having secured control over most of Libya, except for the deep desert in the south.

Libya collapsed into chaos and civil war after the NATO-backed regime change operation in 2011 overthrew the government of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi that had run the country since 1969.

Comment: In Libya's elected government demands UN's usurper regime gone Joanne Morarity provides an overview of the two groups in Libya:

[...] it should be noted that the GNA has been given control of the Libyan central bank and all the oil money in Libya by the UN/US/NATO. [...]

Therefore, the great tribes of Libya have come together in an unprecedented move to support their national army (LNA) to forcibly remove the illegitimate GNA regime, take back control of Libyan assets and set up security for a nation wide vote to create a new Libyan government of the people and by the people.

[...]

3. The usurper regime (GNA) in Tripoli is losing their hold on Tripoli (their last stronghold) and they realize that they will be ousted before long, losing their "golden goose". They have attempted to stop the advance of the Libyan National Army (LNA) by signing an agreement with Turkey.

For more on the situation, see: Turkey threatens to take Libya by force and install Turkish governor

Also check out SOTT radio's:NewsReal: Interview With The Moriartys - New Light on Benghazi, And Liberating Libya

UPDATE: 4th January @ 22:26

RT reports:

The Tripoli-based government of Al-Sarraj struck a military agreement with Turkey, which prompted Ankara to send its troops to Libya. Their aim is to confront Khalifa Haftar, the powerful Libyan military commander based in the eastern port of Tobruk.

The Libyan parliament, which backs Haftar, said on Saturday it refused to ratify the Turkey deal and called for pressing high treason charges against Fayez Al-Sarraj, Al Arabiya reported. The lawmakers said they may refer the situation to the International Court of Justice.

Haftar, who commands the so-called Libyan National Army, earlier declared mobilization to fight against Turkish troops, calling their looming deployment an invasion.